Email Issues

I have recently been having problems with my email account,and quite a few messages have been lost. I am working on the problem, and hope to recover the lost correspondence. However, if you sent me a message around the 2nd of June, and I did not respond, please do not hesitate to contact me again. Suzy; I suspect that some of your messages have not gotten to me, and one of the above hammers is the one that you requested I make for you

While they Last

I just finished a batch of Carnelian Burnishers, with walnut handles. I’m selling them for $40 each. I don’t make these often, so they don’t have a regular place on the tool page, but wanted to let folks know that they are available. If you are interested let me know, just go to the contact and ordering page. Thanks so much.

New Book and Video Have Arrived

I recently received my copy of Unlocking the Secrets of the Ribbon Torc and the companion video. They are even better than I had hoped. I have posted a review on my book review page, in the section of this site for metalsmiths. Brian Clarke has been working on recreating the techniques involved in making Iron Age ribbon torcs for over ten years, and it shows. You can order both the book and video on line at: http://www.ribbontorc.com/ I learned to make ribbon torcs from Brian and it is a truly amazing process that you must see to believe. If you are in North America, be sure to order the video in North American format, not PAL format.

New Work by my Student
Spanish Civil War Relic

This last quarter I have been working with a student from The Evergreen State College, helping him get the metalworking skills for his study contract. One of the projects he just finished, pictured above, is a copper and glass reliquary that holds an old nail. Not one of the alleged nails of the true cross, this one is from the ruins of a bombed out church, that was destroyed by the fascists in the Spanish Civil War. I don’t know much about the place it came from, but among the other bits of metal from the ruins was a clue as to why the church may ave been a target. There were two “E” shaped pieces of rusted sheet metal, which I recognized as transformer plates, of the sort that was used in radio sets. I’m really proud of how hard he worked on this project, even with all the other demands of school and work.

New Project in Progress

For the past couple of weeks I have been working on a custom project, in-between teaching and tool making. It is a silver circlet, here about half done, with a chased design of stylized vines and leaves. To do the work I had to make a jig for the pitch in which the silver gets set, and a new set of texture punches. You can see both on the bench in the picture below. I would like to thank Jim for ordering this project, and Brian for letting me copy so many of his antique punch tools.

Welcome

As you can see I am rebuilding my web site in a new format. This should allow me to update my pages and change the site as need be. It will also allow me to post more detailed pictures of my work, and keep everyone informed about shows and workshops, and other events that I will be a part of. The site is still very much under construction, but please feel free to explore, and to come back in the future to see what new things I post in the coming weeks and months.